Fizzing Out: A Correlational Study of Burnout and Worklife Perceptions Among Student Affairs Professionals in the Mid-Atlantic Northeast Region of the United States

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine level of burnout and the employee perceptions among student affairs professionals (SAPs) in the Mid-Atlantic Northeast Region of the United States. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and the Areas of Worklife Survey (AWS) collectively known as the Maslach Burnout Toolkit was electronically completed by 323 student affairs professionals at institutions located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The research designs utilized demographic and inferential statistics including Pearson Product Moment correlations. The response rate was high enough to make statistically significant associations. The scores obtained from the MBI and AWS subscales were compared overall and along six independent variables including workload, reward, functional position, length of time in student affairs, institutional type, functional position, geographic regional affiliation, and length of time in current role. The MBI results suggested moderate to high levels of exhaustion and depersonalization among the student affairs professionals who participated in this study. Average levels of burnout were found on emotional exhaustion and depersonalization related to both workload and reward. Similar to earlier anchor studies, women experienced higher levels of burnout compared to men, and burnout levels were higher among SAPs within their first five years of service compared to senior SAPs. Burnout levels decreased with years of service in student affairs and age. Collectively the respondents indicated high levels of personal accomplishment indicating SAPs’ commitment to professional development. Residence Life and Student Activities SAPs indicated higher scores on the MBI subscales suggesting higher levels of burnout in these functional positions. Lower scores on the MBI depersonalization subscale were found in midlevel and senior SAPs. The study supported the need for continuing research in burnout and exhaustion of SAP’s and for development of supervision and mentorship throughout SAP’s careers